Re: [Elecraft] XG50 - Frequency Instability - Resolved
Great to hear Gary. You should be all set for the calibration of the KX3 now. 73 David Anderson GM4JJJ On 23 May 2014, at 05:53, kj...@kj7rt.com wrote: First I want to thank those that pointed out that my first two postings didn't contain message content, probably due to using HTML. You were right, I changed the default for this email program to plain text. Second thank you to the responders that suggested solutions to my instability non-problem. Turns out it was the input level to the HP 5334A. Adjustment of the counter nailed it pretty close. Stabilized at 49.38 MHz +-2 Hz. 73 Gary Marklund KJ7RT Sun City, AZ USA Original Message Subject: [Elecraft] XG50 - Frequency Instability From: kj...@kj7rt.com Date: Thu, May 22, 2014 7:31 am To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net I am trying to use my XG50 to run the Extended Temperature Compensation Procedure on my KX3. This is the first time I have attempted to use the XG50 since building it. I have completed the 8 hour burn-in. When I first connect the XG-50 to my HP frequency counter, I get a reading of something like 49.379990. Then after running for several minutes it starts dropping in frequency to something more like 49.32. It is still wildly fluctuating. If I connect the 10MHz output of my Trimble Thunderbolt GPSDO to the counter it stays quite stable just below 10 MHz. I re-soldered all the XG50 components and tried with both a metered home-brew power supply and a 12v SLA battery with the same result although re-soldering made a significant but not permanent improvement. My lab is in my photographic darkroom which has an ambient temperature of about 68 degrees F and the AC does blow across the work area. Thanks, Gary Marklund KJ7RT Sun City, AZ USA __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to kj...@kj7rt.com __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to gm4...@yahoo.co.uk __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] [KX3] Re: 4 metre module (70 Mhz) module possible for the KX3
As I sit here on a flight about to arrive at LHR, the question arises-is it possible or likely, to have the KXPA-100 work on 4m? 73, doug __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] linux K3 utility
I think just install ia32-libs and you’re good to go. 73, David W4DES On May 22, 2014, at 7:03 PM, Doug Person k0...@aol.com wrote: Thanks everyone for all the replies. I'm amazed at how many linux users there are here. I'm fairly sure it must be the 32/64 bit library problems. I seem to recall this problem occurring for something else. Sure would be nice if linux would be a little more clear in what it didn't find. The exact same computer and serial port work fine under Windoze 8.1 64 Enterprise. My hard drives are inserted from the front through a door so I can easily switch operating systems. I normally have Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu and mint Cinnamon ready at any time to just plug in. I just don't run any 32 bit operating systems anymore. I think I can just install the 32 bit libs on Mint 16 with apt-get and all should work. Thanks everyone, Doug -- K0DXV On 5/21/2014 1:59 PM, David Sanders W4DES wrote: The framework they are using doesn’t support 64-bit targets (yet) or they would provide 64-bit binaries. 73, David W4DES On May 21, 2014, at 3:49 PM, Rick Stanback r...@tripletry.com wrote: It would sure be nice to have the sources so we could build the binaries for 64bit. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
[Elecraft] K3 issues - new modules installed - 250 Hz filter, DVK, KXV3A
Hello all, Ran into some issues with the K3 after adding some new boards. Here is the sequence of screens on the radio as I move to get it going again. Few more experiences - And added some more notes in the first email below. On SSB, it transmits okay, no ERR on screen. When I just send a short message on CW, it transmits, then the next time it shows this series of ERR messages. By pushing any button on the radio, it returns to normal screen, showing VFO A and B (smaller print size), then transmit again, ERR TxF and no output power after that first burst of RF. I have swapped power supplies - same problem. Let me describe the sequence of events and what I see on the screen. Power up: E 020202 (main VFO line) under that: ERR DSE (VFO B info) E 020202 under that call sign (VFO B info) scrolling E 020202 under that: ERR DSE Press the A/B button (actually press any button) 14.232.32 under that ERR DS3 Press the A/B button 14.232.32 under that ERR BP2 Press the A/B button 14.232.32 ERR BP3 (pressing the button changes the type of ERR showing? DS3, BP2, BP3, IF2, etc) Press A/B button 14.232.32 ERR IF2 Press A/B button 14.032.00 under that 14.232.32 Transmit on CW (short burst - then nothing - no more TX) 14.032.00 ERR TxF No transmitter power after that first burst of RF. Had some trouble getting the radio to be read by the N1MM program, but eventually got that going. But does not appear to be stable, frequent N1MM message saying to retry connecting the radio, etc. Regards, Mark, K1RX __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] K3 issues - new modules installed - 250 Hz filter, DVK, KXV3A
Hi, Mark. Most of these error messages relate to the second RX. I assume you have the second receiver, and had to remove it, in order to install the 250 filter in the main receiver. If that is the case, you may not have gotten the 2nd RX module properly reseated on the main board. Another error you report, TXF, relates to the transmit filter selected for the particular mode. Did you use the K3 utility to confirm and reconfigure your filter settings after installing the new options? Also, did you activate the new options in the menus, and then power cycle the radio? All the error messages are listed in the back section of the K3 manual. I am sure with some re-inspection, reseating, and configuration verification with the K3 utility, you will be able to get it right. Good luck, Bruce N1RX -Original Message- From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Mark Pride via Elecraft Sent: Friday, May 23, 2014 7:22 AM To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3 issues - new modules installed - 250 Hz filter, DVK,KXV3A Hello all, Ran into some issues with the K3 after adding some new boards. Here is the sequence of screens on the radio as I move to get it going again. Few more experiences - And added some more notes in the first email below. On SSB, it transmits okay, no ERR on screen. When I just send a short message on CW, it transmits, then the next time it shows this series of ERR messages. By pushing any button on the radio, it returns to normal screen, showing VFO A and B (smaller print size), then transmit again, ERR TxF and no output power after that first burst of RF. I have swapped power supplies - same problem. Let me describe the sequence of events and what I see on the screen. Power up: E 020202 (main VFO line) under that: ERR DSE (VFO B info) E 020202 under that call sign (VFO B info) scrolling E 020202 under that: ERR DSE Press the A/B button (actually press any button) 14.232.32 under that ERR DS3 Press the A/B button 14.232.32 under that ERR BP2 Press the A/B button 14.232.32 ERR BP3 (pressing the button changes the type of ERR showing? DS3, BP2, BP3, IF2, etc) Press A/B button 14.232.32 ERR IF2 Press A/B button 14.032.00 under that 14.232.32 Transmit on CW (short burst - then nothing - no more TX) 14.032.00 ERR TxF No transmitter power after that first burst of RF. Had some trouble getting the radio to be read by the N1MM program, but eventually got that going. But does not appear to be stable, frequent N1MM message saying to retry connecting the radio, etc. Regards, Mark, K1RX __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to bef...@myfairpoint.net __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] K3 issues - new modules installed - 250 Hz filter, DVK, KXV3A
I forgot to mention- the DSP error messages- you had to disassemble the front panel assembly to install the DVK. You may not have that stack properly re-assembled, leading to some of the DSx error messages. You may have to remove the front panel assembly again, to inspect your work there. 73, Bruce N1RX -Original Message- From: Elecraft [mailto:elecraft-boun...@mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Mark Pride via Elecraft Sent: Friday, May 23, 2014 7:22 AM To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net Subject: [Elecraft] K3 issues - new modules installed - 250 Hz filter, DVK,KXV3A Hello all, Ran into some issues with the K3 after adding some new boards. Here is the sequence of screens on the radio as I move to get it going again. Few more experiences - And added some more notes in the first email below. On SSB, it transmits okay, no ERR on screen. When I just send a short message on CW, it transmits, then the next time it shows this series of ERR messages. By pushing any button on the radio, it returns to normal screen, showing VFO A and B (smaller print size), then transmit again, ERR TxF and no output power after that first burst of RF. I have swapped power supplies - same problem. Let me describe the sequence of events and what I see on the screen. Power up: E 020202 (main VFO line) under that: ERR DSE (VFO B info) E 020202 under that call sign (VFO B info) scrolling E 020202 under that: ERR DSE Press the A/B button (actually press any button) 14.232.32 under that ERR DS3 Press the A/B button 14.232.32 under that ERR BP2 Press the A/B button 14.232.32 ERR BP3 (pressing the button changes the type of ERR showing? DS3, BP2, BP3, IF2, etc) Press A/B button 14.232.32 ERR IF2 Press A/B button 14.032.00 under that 14.232.32 Transmit on CW (short burst - then nothing - no more TX) 14.032.00 ERR TxF No transmitter power after that first burst of RF. Had some trouble getting the radio to be read by the N1MM program, but eventually got that going. But does not appear to be stable, frequent N1MM message saying to retry connecting the radio, etc. Regards, Mark, K1RX __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to bef...@myfairpoint.net __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] XG50 - Frequency Instability - Resolved
Thanks for posting that, Gary. As a user of the XG50 it's reassuring that you have resolved this issue. Phil w7ox On 5/22/14, 9:53 PM, kj...@kj7rt.com wrote: First I want to thank those that pointed out that my first two postings didn't contain message content, probably due to using HTML. You were right, I changed the default for this email program to plain text. Second thank you to the responders that suggested solutions to my instability non-problem. Turns out it was the input level to the HP 5334A. Adjustment of the counter nailed it pretty close. Stabilized at 49.38 MHz +-2 Hz. 73 Gary Marklund KJ7RT Sun City, AZ USA Original Message Subject: [Elecraft] XG50 - Frequency Instability From: kj...@kj7rt.com Date: Thu, May 22, 2014 7:31 am To: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net I am trying to use my XG50 to run the Extended Temperature Compensation Procedure on my KX3. This is the first time I have attempted to use the XG50 since building it. I have completed the 8 hour burn-in. When I first connect the XG-50 to my HP frequency counter, I get a reading of something like 49.379990. Then after running for several minutes it starts dropping in frequency to something more like 49.32. It is still wildly fluctuating. If I connect the 10MHz output of my Trimble Thunderbolt GPSDO to the counter it stays quite stable just below 10 MHz. I re-soldered all the XG50 components and tried with both a metered home-brew power supply and a 12v SLA battery with the same result although re-soldering made a significant but not permanent improvement. My lab is in my photographic darkroom which has an ambient temperature of about 68 degrees F and the AC does blow across the work area. Thanks, Gary Marklund KJ7RT Sun City, AZ USA __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] Stackable Binding Post (BNC-BP)
Joshua, This is the beginning of a very long discussion, and one I'm still studying after decades as a ham. Ignoring the counterpoise for just a moment.. If your wire is 1/4 wave on some band, it will have a fairly low impedance at the binding post connector and the KX3 tuner will tune it just fine. If your wire is some other length on the same band, there will be a higher impedance at the feedpoint, and the KX3 will tune it just fine. If your wire is 1/2 wave on that band, the impedance will be very high, and the tuner likely won't tune it. The reason you want to be aware of this is that a 1/4 wave on 20m will be 1/2 wave on 10m. I used to think that resonance was king, and the tuner made the antenna resonant. I'm starting to actually believe that isn't true. Something that is truly random will work on some bands, not on others. There are charts that tell you how much wire to use so it is not 1/2 wave on any useful ham band. Alternately, you can just have a couple of different lengths of wire so if you stumble on a half-wave length, you can switch to something ten or fifteen feet longer or shorter. 73 -- Lynn On 5/22/2014 4:52 PM, Joshua Gould wrote: One of the things I'm looking at is the Stackable binding posts. The way I read this is that I can just use a random length wire (provided that it is a 1/4 wavelength on some band), hook it to the radio and just get on the air... __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
[Elecraft] KX3 Heatsinks
Thanks to the confusion concerning the source of the KX3 Heatsink a couple of days ago, I wound up ordering the one manufactured by Pro Audio engineering. It arrived this morning and I installed it in less than a half hour. I think it deserves a quick review here as everything necessary was included including some heat sink compound. There are three options as to how it can be installed. Option 1 is no case modifications and no heat sink grease used. Option 2 is no case modifications, heat sink compound used on the PA transistors inside the KX3 case only. Option 3 requires removing the powder coating on the outside of the bottom half of the KX3's case in the same area it's factory removed behind the PA transistors and coating the area behind each transistor, the back of the transistors and the outside of the case in the area the powder coating was removed as well as the bare area on the heatsink. I chose Option 2 and it was very easy to do without performing the suggested separation of the PC board from the bottom half of the case. After removing the KX3's original heat sink plate, carefully bend the PA transistors forward just enough to get a toothpick between them and the back of the case. Using the supplied heat sink compound, lightly coat the back of both transistors and the back of the case where the powder coating was left off at the factory. Carefully move the transistors back into contact with the KX3's case, insert the two end screws in the new heat sink and just snug them. Next insert the two screws that hold the PA transistors, using a pair of tweezers to position and hold the nuts. Once the nuts are properly started on those screws, tighten the other two screws holding the heat sink to the case and then tighten the two that hold the PA transistors. CAUTION, one of the 4 screws supplied with the new heat sink is much longer than the other three. This screw MUST be used in the hole of the heat sink on the side of the KX3 that contains the power connector - if you use it anywhere else, the KX3 could be damaged by that screw contacting something inside the case. It's purpose is to pass through the hole used to keep the KX3's roofing filter module from coming unplugged if it's installed. Operating the KX3 on RTTY used to get the back of it pretty warm if I did a lot of transmitting though I never bothered to check the PA temperature (probably should have). Because I hadn't checked it before, I didn't check the temp during the after install test either, just used the feel of the case to judge. I ran the KX3 key down for around 10 minutes at 10 watts output into my big dummy load and periodically felt the heat sink during that time. The power never folded back and I couldn't really detect much warmup of the heat sink after those 10 minutes so in my opinion, this one works just fine also. Jim - W0EB __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
Re: [Elecraft] [K2] CAL FIL Temperature Sensitivity Question
Fixed! A year of looking at solder joints, and flowing a few, did not fix the problem. I recently ordered and replaced L33 and the two BFO crystals. The three parts fixed the problem! Replaced L33 so that I did not need to worry about breaking the fine wires when removing the old one. John KN5L On 07/24/2013 10:59 AM, John Oppenheimer wrote: My K2 has a 100 Hz difference in CAL FIL frequencies between cold and full warm up. __ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
